Akwa Ibom to partner Canada on power

Akwa Ibom State has sought the partnership of Canadian companies in generating adequate electricity supply to boost its economy.

Speaking when he received Canadian High Commissioner in Nigeria Chris Cooter in Uyo, the state capital, Governor Godswill Akpabio said the state’s Independent Power Plant is producing 191 megawatts of electricity, adding that it needs partnership to generate more for distribution to consumers.

Akpabio said: “With the recent completion of our independent power plant (IPP), we would want to partner Canadian companies to improve on the power generation and expansion of the current power to many consumers’’.

He also sought Canada’s assistance in the development of Ibaka Deep Seaport, saying: “We will be glad to see Canadian companies coming to develop Ibaka Seaport and to partner with us on the development of the aviation sector through Akwa Ibom International Airport. Already, we are constructing an international hangar, which would make us the first state to land a Boeing 380 aircraft in the country”.

Akpabio added: “We want to co-operate with companies in Canada for investment by bringing in more companies for investment and the development of the state. Akwa Ibom State is an economic hub; so we are building the state for the future. That is why we’re building basic infrastructure to facilitate the economic boom of the nation”.

Earlier, Cooter said Nigeria and Canada had moved fast in their partnership in the last six months, noting that in October, last year, both countries signed a trade agreement to cement their ties.

Cooter said his country is partnering India on the construction of hospitals, adding that in May, the Canadian government would permit Nigeria to bring 200 persons on a trade mission to the country.